Mariners second baseman Nick Franklin, right, collides with the Angels' Kole Calhoun after Calhoun broke-up a double play in the third inning Thursday.
ELAINE THOMPSON
,
AP

SEATTLE – Let the pennant race begin.

While the calendar is still on the final days of May, it’s never too early to have a big series. That’s just what the Angels face Friday, as they go to Oakland for the first time this season. They haven’t seen the first-place Athletics in six weeks.

“It’s early in the season, but any time you play your division rivals it’s huge,” Angels catcher Hank Conger said. “We’re not dumb. We know they’re in first place. It’s early, but it’s important. It’s going to be a big test for us to get a gauge of where we stand.”

That would be second place. Thanks to the Texas Rangers’ injuries, the Seattle Mariners’ general inconsistency and the Houston Astros’ youth, the AL West looks like it might be a two-team race.

The Angels will play the A’s in six of their next 12 games, including a series at Angel Stadium on June 9-11.

“I don’t think it’s too early for a big series,” Kole Calhoun said. “They are going to be huge.”

The A’s have won the division two years in a row, each time defying expectations. Even with that recent track record, they have been somewhat of a surprise this year because they’ve played so well despite the loss of two of their top starters, Jarrod Parker and A.J. Griffin. Still, the A’s have bolted to first place, with the best run-differential in the game.

“They’re a team, man,” Calhoun said. “They’re a team, in every aspect. They all believe in each other. They all go out and play baseball together. That’s what teams do. They’ve been doing it for some years now.”

Added Conger: “Hopefully they get the credit they deserve considering what they’ve done the past two years. The biggest thing that is pretty noticeable is they grind. They don’t waste at-bats. They are hard-nosed. They are always pretty much in it to the ninth.”

When they met last month at Angel Stadium, they played three one-run games, including two extra-inning games. The A’s won two of three. Since the start of 2013, 10 of their 22 meetings have been decided by one or two runs.

PUJOLS SITS

Albert Pujols had started every game of the season until Thursday, when Manager Mike Scioscia gave Pujols a day off he didn’t want.

“It (stinks), but at the same time you can’t be selfish,” said Pujols, who conceded that a day off can be a benefit.

Pujols had hit .198 with a .253 on-base percentage over his previous 20 games, but he said he’s feeling fine physically. He said his recent at-bats, including a ninth-inning double Wednesday, encourage him that he is turning the corner.

REHAB REPORT

Josh Hamilton, who is expected to resume his rehab assignment Friday, could return to the Angels in the next week.

Hamilton, whose rehab from thumb surgery was stalled when he suffered a bone bruise of his left thumb, took batting practice the past two days in Seattle. He is expected to play for Salt Lake City starting Friday in Tacoma.

If all goes well, Hamilton could join the Angels on Tuesday in Houston, where he has a career OPS of 1.129. ...

Dane De La Rosa appeared in back-to-back games Tuesday and Wednesday for the first time in his rehab assignment. Scioscia said De La Rosa is “slowly making progress. I think for Dane just to get the confidence to know he’s where he needs to be might take a couple more outings.”

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